The Hindu Business Line : Idea dials into Mumbai

Biz strategy
Idea expects to garner 20% of the net subscriber additions in Mumbai
The company has also launched its data cards and GSM payphones
It will launch services in Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu and Orissa in the next six months

Paul Noronha

New launch: Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla (left), Chairman, Aditya Birla Group, and Mr Sanjeev Aga, Managing Director, Idea Cellular, at a press conference in Mumbai on Wednesday.

Our Bureau

Mumbai, Aug. 20 Armed with an investment plan of Rs 800 crore, Idea Cellular today became the fifth GSM operator to offer mobile telephony services in Mumbai. The Aditya Birla group company will offer mobile services on a cellular network that will have a capacity of handling up to 1.5 million subscribers.

As Mumbai is one of the country’s most lucrative telecom circles, Idea expects to garner 20 per cent of the new telecom subscribers here, Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of the Aditya Birla Group, said, at a news conference. “Our basic strategy in Mumbai will be to migrate dissatisfied customers of other networks to Idea. Which is why we are starting with one thousand cell sites, which is the largest ever in the world for a city launch,” said Mr Birla.

The country’s sixth largest telco will manage to break even in Mumbai by four years, said Mr Birla.

Idea had got the DoT’s nod for starting services in Mumbai back in 2006.

However, its plans kept getting delayed owing to the spectrum crunch in the country.

For its Mumbai operations alone, Idea is in the process of investing Rs 800 crore by the end of the current fiscal. It has already invested Rs 650 crore till date; this includes the Rs 203-crore payments towards licence fee, said Mr Himashu Kapania, Director-Operations, Idea Cellular.

Brand promotion

The company has also launched its data cards and GSM payphones in Mumbai. As part of its strategy to promote the Idea brand, it will roll out about 60 exclusive outlets in the city, according to its Chief Marketing Officer, Mr Pradeep Shrivastava.

The company will provide both pre-paid and post-paid mobile connections to its potential customers.

Idea will launch cellular services in Bihar, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu and Orissa in the next six months, said Mr Sanjeev Aga, Managing Director, Idea Cellular.

In Bihar, the company is expected to set up operations by coming November. Ericsson is the common network vendor for Idea Cellular in western India.

Reacting to the development, the Idea Cellular scrip hit an intra-day high of Rs 85.5, before settling at Rs 84.2, up 2.81 per cent on the BSE.

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Carrier choice for long distance telephony gets nearer

RCom-GSM players’ row over links close to resolution

Idea dials into Mumbai

‘Spice Telecom brand will cease to exist’

Ansal to invest Rs 3,600 cr in IT SEZs

Online travel advisor

LiveJournal unveils writing contest

Northgate arm Axill buys Reuters’ London data centre

SAP, Wipro launch ERP solution for mid-size firms

HP Snapfish, Indiaplaza.in to launch photo centre

iPhone to be launched today at Rs 31,000